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Middle East Programs

Working with our allies and partners in Europe and the wider Middle East to protect US interests, build peace and security, and unlock the human potential of the region.

Libya

Content

New Atlanticist

May 24, 2017

Manchester Bombing Puts Libya’s ISIS Problem Back in the Spotlight

By Ashish Kumar Sen

A horrific suicide bombing in Manchester has put a spotlight on Libya—the North African nation where the chaos that has prevailed for the better part of the past six years has become a fertile breeding ground for a mélange of terrorist groups, including the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS). “What Manchester shows is […]

Libya

MENASource

May 23, 2017

Tactical Lessons from the Ejection of ISIS from Sirte

By Dr Alia Brahimi and Jason Pack

In December 2016, ISIS was ejected from Sirte by a coalition of forces allied to the UN-backed government. US airstrikes and special operations by western forces were integral to the campaign and, combined, provided the tipping point. This article proposes three tactical lessons from the campaign – which, of course, contain within them strategic implications. 

Libya

In the News

May 18, 2017

Mezran Quoted in Al Jazeera English on Meeting Between Libyan Rival Leaders

By Karim Mezran

Read the full article here.

Libya

MENASource

May 18, 2017

Governing Egypt: Cohesion and Consolidation

By Dr. H.A. Hellyer

A little over a year ago, it was still possible to speak of the ‘regimen’ of Egyptian president Sisi’s ‘non-regime.’ Power was dispersed, disparate, and given to erratic bursts of energy, that had far more to do with localised and internal disputes, than to an overarching directive from a cohesive chief governor.

North Africa Political Reform

MENASource

May 17, 2017

The Future of the Islamic State: Less Territory, More Brutality

By Belal Alaa

The Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) is a radical organization with vast capacity for recruitment and cultural domination – yet lacks its own literature, even a zealous, superficial manifesto. That is not a mistake or an oversight: the organization simply doesn’t need one. Daesh did not need to sow the seeds for the cultural dominance […]

North Africa

MENASource

May 16, 2017

Strategic Lessons from the Ejection of ISIS from Sirte

By Dr Alia Brahimi and Jason Pack

Though accompanied by curiously little fanfare, the Obama administration’s most significant victory against the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) came not in Iraq or Syria, but in Libya. After eight months of fighting, the coastal city of Sirte was ‘liberated’ in December 2016, by a coalition of forces allied to the UN-backed government in Tripoli.

Libya

MENASource

May 10, 2017

Factbox: Algeria’s Parliamentary Election

By Elissa Miller and Husayn Hosoda

On May 4th, Algerians went to the polls to cast their ballots in the country’s parliamentary elections. The ruling coalition of the National Liberation Front or Front de Libération Nationale (FLN) and the National Rally for Democracy (RND) emerged victorious, respectively winning 164 and ninety-seven of the 462 seats in the national assembly.

North Africa

In the News

May 7, 2017

Miller in The Arab Weekly: A Possible Breakthrough for Libya

By Elissa Miller

Read the full article here.

Libya

In the News

May 7, 2017

Mabrouk Quoted by Enterprise on US-Egypt Relations

By Mirette F. Mabrouk

Read the full article here.

North Africa

In the News

May 5, 2017

Mezran Meets with US-Libyan Business Association

By Karim Mezran

Read the full article here.

Libya

Experts